3 Often Overlooked Home Details

3 Often Overlooked Home Details

Think you’ve found the perfect home? Think again. There are three little details which can turn an ideal house into the world’s most annoying location. Before you make your offer, take into account these three small, but surprisingly important details:

#1: “Let me call you back on my landline.”Does your future dream home have cell reception? Check your signal when you’re on the property and see if it has dead spots, poor/limited data connections, or flat out “NO SERVICE” messages. This is especially important if you telecommute or had planned on skipping a landline entirely. While you can try and live on VoIP connections, WiFi, and other options, the hassle of a hole in cell coverage can wear on you.

#2: “Wow, the commute is longer than I thought.”It’s a sunny Saturday afternoon, and for kicks you decide to see how long the drive is from your potential dream home to your office. Doesn’t seem too bad, does it? Now try it during rush hour on a Monday (in bad weather if you can swing it). You might be surprised how school zones, backed-up interstate ramps, new construction, and peak transit schedules extend that commute. This goes for urban commutes too, so even if you don’t drive to work you’ll want to evaluate the commute in real-world conditions.

#3: “What do you mean we’re outside your delivery zone?”The neighborhood was gentrifying. The home price was within your range. Now you find out that there’s no such thing as food delivery to your new address! Don’t assume that just because you’ve seen pizza delivery cars whipping through the ‘hood means they stop there. Restaurant delivery areas are often drawn like congressional districts, so if you can, check out what the local food delivery options are like ahead of time. Look up a few places, call them, and verify they deliver to your address. (Asking the average delivery time is a good idea, too.)

Markets can be super competitive, but remember that you’re planning on living in this new house for a considerable amount of time. (Most people would tell you at least 5 - 7 years.) Perhaps your priorities don’t include these three details, but they might to other buyers when you’re ready to sell. Time changes things, but ask yourself: Do you want to put up with the annoyances for two years? Even one?